Acting on voices: Omnipotence, sources of threat, and safety-seeking behaviours.

Full Abstract

OBJECTIVES:
Previous research indicates that beliefs about voice power and omnipotence are associated with distress, depression, and compliance. The present study investigates whether acting on voices to mitigate perceived threat, in a broader sense than compliance, is driven by delusional beliefs, as the Chadwick, Birchwood, and Trower cognitive-behavioural model of voices would suggest. The role of safety behaviours in maintaining beliefs about voice omnipotence and distress is also examined.

DESIGN:
A cross-sectional investigation of 30 individuals with current experience of auditory verbal hallucinations was conducted.

METHOD:
Participants were assessed on self-report measures of voice topography, voice-related threat and distress, safety behaviour use, beliefs about voices, and depression and anxiety.

RESULTS:
Three sources of threat were identified:
physical harm, shame, and loss of control. Twenty-six individuals had recently used safety behaviours, believing them to be effective in threat reduction. The degree of safety behaviour use and voice-related distress were associated with voice omnipotence beliefs; mood or voice characteristics did not account for this relationship. The association of safety behaviours with increased distress was mediated by beliefs about voice omnipotence.

CONCLUSIONS:
Acting on voices can be conceptualized as a form of safety seeking, associated with maintaining beliefs about voice omnipotence and distress.

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Author information

Author/s: Hacker, David (D); Birchwood, Max (M); Tudway, Jeremy (J); Meaden, Alan (A); Amphlett, Catherine (C);

Affiliation: Clinical Psychology Department, Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Trust, Birmingham, UK. david.hacker(-atsign-)bsmht.nhs.uk

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Comparative Study; Journal Article

Journal: The British journal of clinical psychology / the British Psychological Society (Br J Clin Psychol), published in England. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2008-Jun; vol 47 (issue Pt 2) : pp 201-13

Dates: Created 2008/05/21; Completed 2008/09/03;

PMID: 17958943, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Adaptation, Psychological
Adult
Aggression - psychology
Anxiety - prevention & control; psychology
Coercion
Cross-Sectional Studies
Delusions - diagnosis; psychology
Emotions
Female
Hallucinations - diagnosis; psychology
Humans
Internal-External Control

Male
Middle Aged
Models, Psychological
Phonetics
Power (Psychology)
Psychiatric Status Rating Scales - statistics & numerical data
Questionnaires
Schizophrenia - diagnosis
Schizophrenic Psychology
Speech Perception
Stress, Psychological - psychology
Voice

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